


Fair Wind and Following Seas

by thefandomexpert



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post TftBl, Ship!Jack au, tales spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 09:17:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19248256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefandomexpert/pseuds/thefandomexpert
Summary: “That’s good,” Rhys was saying, “sorry, I didn’t realize they had individual AIs on these models.”>They don’t, usually. I’m special.Rhys’ grin widened. “Well, I suppose I must have gotten lucky then.”>You and me both babe.(Based on a conversation in a rhack server. Just before Helios falls, Jack copies himself into a separate Hyperion ship. Rhys is getting tired of the old Atlas bases. Jack still wants to kill Rhys. Don't worry, he'll get over it.)





	Fair Wind and Following Seas

**Author's Note:**

> ok ok OK OK BEFORe you all come at me with pitchforks and torches,,,yes I'm still working on Rigor Samsa, I just have to,,,catch up,,,on league lore,,,,,,,,,again.
> 
> Back to Borderlands! First chapter is a lil short, but that's alright. Just wanted to get the basics out of the way, get a feel for the characters. This idea wasn't mine originally, a Rhack discord was having a good time and I got way carried away and now we're here. I have a whole outline guys, it's gonna be fun.  
> This starts at the end of Tales, the entirety of which (vault-hunting post time-skip included) has occurred (relatively) canonically. Jack jumping ship (for another, smaller, ship) didn't change all that much since he left the 'master copy' in Helios (allowing for that Final Confrontation we see in Tales). Ship!Jack doesn't know anything about what's happened since Helios crashed.
> 
> I think saying anything further would spoil it...so lets get started, yeah?

Jack didn’t know quite how long it took for Rhys to find him. He watched as the body he’d cohabited clambered up onto the half-lowered loading ramp; the footage from the backup security cameras were tinted monochrome red and grainy as hell but it was definitely Jack’s Rhys. Jack felt a dull spike of loathing. He was too tired to think of exact reasons why but he hated this man peering curiously into his depths.

Rhys explored the Hyperion transport without hurry. Jack kept track of him, equally lazy under the influence of emergency power.  The ship was dark and loose objects had been strewn with abandon from the awkward landing, but Rhys seemed pleased all the same. Or at least, Jack thought he looked pleased. The cameras were giving him awful angles to work with and there was no sound.

Rhys patted the hull walls as he went from room to room, eye glowing as he assessed the various damages. The control room was relatively ok. Rhys brushed dust off the main computer and Jack jolted as Rhys’ metal fingers ghosted the button that would engage primary power. He could feel that, faintly, just over his heart. Or where he thought his heart would be. Or something. He was supposed to be human, existing as a ship AI was weird sometimes, ok?

Rhys realized what the button was and the ship screeched to life. It was like being flayed alive, stabbed, and shot at the same time; there was so much pain Jack couldn’t think. Every bone was broken and every nerve was on fire, and his scar burned so hot for a moment Jack scrambled for his mask, convinced the microplastic was melting into his skin.

“O-oh god, I’m so sorry, Jesus, fuck-“

Rhys’ voice filtered into Jack’s awareness along with an awful grating sound that cut off abruptly as Jack realized that was him, trying to scream through broken speakers. Rhys was bent over the control panel, still murmuring apologies, fingers flying over the controls. He flipped a switch and part of Jack’s pain ebbed. Flight engine power cut as Rhys yanked the handle all the way down and Jack almost cried with relief as the feeling of his legs being amputated by inch increments was replaced by floating numbness.

>Thanks kiddo.

The message pinged on the main monitor before Jack could think about it. Not really how this reunion was supposed to go down but fine.

Rhys was still working on the console but he blinked owlishly at the screen for a moment. “Yeah, yeah, uh, hang on.”

The ship gave one final shudder and then settled into a low hum as Rhys shut off the last straining system.

Jack was awake now, completely. He didn’t have a mask, or hands, or anything human of course, that had all been memory reflex. Somehow his scar was still burning, despite its non-existence. At least now he was aware enough to know any semblance of human form was just a psychosomatic echo. Things deep in his physical systems were wrong, Jack could tell, but the pain was no longer immediate or so all-consuming, and now he had access to the full surveillance system. The first thing he did was get a proper look at Rhys. He’d ditched the Hyperion arm for a sleek silver model Jack immediately detested and his eye glowed a sick Atlas gold. Jack hated that more.

“Hey,” Rhys looked around the monitor, “uh, can you hear me in there?”

Rhys jumped a foot as the speakers screeched with static. As hilarious as that was, not being able to talk wasn’t exactly productive.

>Yeah. I can hear you.

Rhys smiled, eager. Nervous. It’d been so long since Jack had seen that stupid hopeful grin.

He wished he still had fingers, so he could feel Rhys’ throat collapse under them.

“That’s good,” Rhys was saying, “sorry, I didn’t realize they had individual AIs on these models.”

>They don’t, usually. I’m special.

Rhys’ grin widened. “Well, I suppose I must have gotten lucky then.”

>You and me both babe.

 

Rhys was looking for a home. He had a current base of operations, some “old facilities” that Jack reasoned was probably one of the Atlas bases they’d found during their little road trip, but apparently Rhys needed something a little newer. And less filled with the same fruit preserves. That said, this was Pandora; it wasn’t easy to find a sturdy structure that wasn’t overrun by some group of bandits or other. Jack’s current body, a downed but otherwise intact helios ship, hidden by an outcropping of rocks and sheltered by near impassable stretches of Pandoran desert, was the perfect solution.

>If it’s so impassable how’d you get here?

Rhys grinned. “I said _nearly_ impassable. I have a friend who’s good at cars, I’ve picked up a few tricks from her.”

That would be Springs.

>You must be pretty good.

“Built this didn’t I?” Rhys waved his silver arm.

Jack felt a reluctant twinge of respect. Ditching the Hyperion brand arm had still been unnecessary, but Rhys was smarter than he’d realized if he’d managed to build the arm himself. Although-

>How long did it take you? For the arm.

Rhys made a face. “Uh...couple a’ months. Eye took way longer.”

Jack mentally sat back, processing. First, the minimum time between now and the Helios crash was a year, Rhys couldn’t have rebuilt the eye any faster than that. Second was that Rhys had replaced both parts himself. There had to have been a reason for that. To rebuild the clearly Hyperion-branded arm...a petty move but plausible, even for someone not a cybernetic surgeon. The ECHO eye though? Messing with that was risky business.

Rhys watched the monitor for a moment before he seemed to realize Jack was done talking to him. “Right, so.” He made a little noise as he hoisted himself up off the chair. They’d been talking for longer than he’d thought, apparently. “Are we good? Can I...stay here?”

>Fix the speakers first, thinking in letters is getting real fuckin’ annoying.

Rhys smiled. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

**Author's Note:**

> Jonah  
> A person (either a sailor or a passenger) who carries a jinx, one whose presence on board brings bad luck and endangers the ship.


End file.
